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Topic: Robocop (2014) (Read 13365 times)

Darren Aronofsky -- the creative visionary behind the likes of Pi, Requiem for a Dream and The Fountain -- could be set to remake a sci-fi classic in the very near future.

Buried deep in a story about MGM's upcoming slate, The Hollywood Reporter reveals that Aronofsky had recently visited the studio to discuss their Robocop reboot.

While this had previously been another project to add to the growing list of unnecessary remakes, the thought of Aronofsky tinkering with Paul Verhoeven's original certainly intrigues us.

The combination of an intelligent script with visual flare so prominent in his previous three efforts could be just the thing to re-invigorate the franchise. Or perhaps the studio should respect the brilliant original and leave well enough alone.

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“Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art.” - Andy Warhol

I don't understand the idea that remaking a film is somehow sullying the original. No matter what happens, the original Robocop is still great. They're not taking that away from us (they can't). So let them do whatever and if it turns out interesting, I'll watch.

Indeed. But "RoboCop" is coming out of retirement courtesy of director Darren Aronofsky and writer David Self. The writer-director of "The Fountain" and the writer of "Road to Perdition" have signed deals to develop a big-budget 21st century installment in the saga of the human-machine hybrid crime fighter.

Phoenix Pictures' Mike Medavoy, Arnold Messer, Brad Fischer and David Thwaites will produce. Cale Boyter, executive vp production at MGM, will oversee for the studio. Although the Lion has not greenlighted the reinvention, it has fast-tracked "RoboCop" for a 2010 release, when the studio plans to roll out its new slate.

"Darren is undeniably one of the most talented, original and visceral filmmakers, and David is one of the greatest writers in Hollywood," said Mary Parent, chairman of MGM's worldwide motion picture group.

The original "RoboCop," written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner, was directed with camp adroitness by Paul Verhoeven in 1987 and released by Orion Pictures. It focused on a mortally wounded cop in a futuristic, crime-ridden Detroit who returns to fight corruption in the guise of a tough-talking cyborg. Sequels followed in 1990 and 1993, along with TV series and video games. RoboCop retains a sizable fan base online.

"After making the first 'RoboCop' at Orion more than 20 years ago, I'm thrilled to be helping to return this character to the screen through the eyes of Darren Aronofsky and David Self," Medavoy said.

Parent and MGM chairman-CEO Harry Sloan announced their "RoboCop" revival in May at Cannes, and they're hoping to rebuild the do-gooding manbot, utilizing the latest filmmaking technology and spending accordingly, as much as $100 million on the budget. The tone and feel would be similar to the first movie.

MGM had been talking to several filmmakers about rebooting the franchise and started meeting with Aronofsky a month ago. At the time, Aronofsky, who is repped by CAA, was finishing up postproduction on "The Wrestler" and hoping to move forward with "The Fighter" at Paramount. But greenlight delays resulting from potential SAG labor strife and actor scheduling left him open to wooing.

Self, repped by UTA, has written screenplays for "Thirteen Days" and Universal's upcoming "Wolf Man" remake.

In resuscitating the MGM brand, Parent and company have been looking to the studio's library for ripe remake material. Revamps of "Red Dawn," "Fame," "Poltergeist" and "Death Wish" are all in the works.

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“Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art.” - Andy Warhol

Robocop has three prime directives he has to follow at all times. Producer Brad Fischer has just one: "Make a great film," he told MTV News of his hopes for a "Robocop" reboot, coming to theaters from director Darren Aronofsky in 2010.

And make no mistake, Fischer and his co-producer Mike Medavoy insisted: Their new "Robocop" is a reboot along the lines of "Batman Begins," despite early online rumors to the contrary.

Asked where in the series the fourth film would fall, whether it would come after the first, second or third films in the series' internal universe, Fischer and Medavoy were adamant that it would stand on its own, apart from the character's earlier incarnations.

"Definitely not a sequel," Medavoy added, saying he preferred the term "reimagining."

As for specific details on the plot or look of the film, Fischer and Medavoy remained more secretive than Area 51, only going so far as to say, "All will be revealed."

Whatever the story, it will be guided to the big-screen by Aronofsky, the director of "Requiem for a Dream" and "Pi," whom Fischer referred to as one of the brightest and most intelligent filmmakers around.

But why a "Robocop" reboot at all? Medavoy, who worked on the earlier three films, said it's because the themes explored in the first film, of fading humanity in the face of corporate and commercial omnipresence, have only become more relevant in the intervening 15 years.

"The themes of machines and technology, for instance, that's certainly become even more prevalent today in terms of man giving up certain things to his creations and his technology and his reliance to that. It's pretty provocative stuff," he said. "You've got people today with all kinds of different implants and mechanical implants. Where does that person become no longer human? After the first one? After 50 percent of the brain gets replaced? A lot of the themes that we dealt with in the original are still very interesting to us."

As to whether Peter Weller, the star of "Robocop," would make an appearance, Medavoy would only say that it was "the director's choice."

"Robocop" is aiming for a 2010 release

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“Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art.” - Andy Warhol

And between his two wrestling pictures and a remake (if Barton Fink had a sequel, it would involve him remaking Train Coming into a Station or something), he must have a lot of meals planned. I guess he's gotta feed that baby.

Hopefully all this studio stuff will amalgamate into license for him to do an amazing personal project.

Darren Aronofsky Hints ‘Robocop’ Will Take Place In ‘Unrecognizable’ CitySource: MTV

When news leaked that visionary director Darren Aronofsky was about to shepherd a fourth big-screen incarnation of “Robocop,” fans of the character were simultaneously both excited and a little confused. Aronofsky? The guy who directed “Requiem for a Dream” and “Pi”? Just what in the heck brought him to the project in the first place?

Don’t bother asking Aronofsky himself, who is more difficult to decipher than the plot of “The Fountain” (zing!). When MTV News caught up with him at the Toronto Film Festival, all Aronofsky would say of what attracted him was that “it’s an interesting landscape.”

“But we’ve got to get a screenplay. We’re deep in it,” he added. “But there’s not much to say until there is a screenplay.”

We had much better luck talking to the film’s producers last month, when they told us, among other things, that the film wasn’t a direct sequel and that it would have a hard R-rating.

Aronofsky, meanwhile? Well, he did drop one little nugget. Asked where the film would be set – whether it would be Detroit again or some other American city, the director casually replied “I don’t think it’s set anywhere that’s recognizable.”

Of course, it’s probable he wasn’t talking about a brand new city, but just a city of the future – which because of new advances in technology and other such nonsense isn’t really recognizable to people of today.

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“Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art.” - Andy Warhol

Darren Aronofsky, who is attached to direct a remake of RoboCop, told a group of reporters that he has long been drawn to cyborg stories and is aiming for a hardcore interpretation of the movie.

Aronofsky's own medical procedure sparked his interest in cyborgs.

"Before you get an MRI, they give you a list of like 38 different things, how you can have metal in your body," Aronofosky said in a group interview on Dec. 10 in Beverly Hills, Calif., where he was promoting The Wrestler. "From a shutter in your eyelid to a pacemaker, screws and all this stuff you can have in your system. I realized, 'Wow, we are cyborgs.' I mean, everything's not inside us, but the way we're connected to the technology and everything is right there."

The original Paul Verhoeven R-rated film was notoriously violent. Its sequels toned down the carnage to earn a PG-13 rating and a TV series was even more watered down. But Aronofsky said that he plans to return to the hardcore tone.

"If we do it, it [can] definitely be rated R," Aronofsky said. "I mean, [it won't] necessarily, but we have that freedom."

At this stage, Aronofsky is just developing the screenplay with writer David Self. "We have a long way to go," he said. "So until there's a screenplay, there's nothing to really talk about. Until we're going, it just doesn't exist for me. It's just like we're trying to get something good, and we'll see what happens."

Meanwhile, Aronofsky said that he has completed a new cut of his philosophical SF art film The Fountain, which he hopes Warner Brothers will allow him to release. He dubs it a "redux" rather than a recut.

"It's something more for fans," Aronofsky said. "I worked on the film for six years, and it went through a lot of versions. There was one version that was much closer to one of the scripts that we had, and we chose between which way we would go with it. They both are interesting, so I always was curious for myself to see what that alternative version would be."

The theatrical cut of the film divided audiences, provoking hostile reactions at film festivals. Of the new cut, Aronofsky said, "It's very similar but looking at a few things in a few different ways, and it answers a few questions for people and raises some new questions in other ways, so it's kind of cool."

MGM hopes to have RoboCop in theaters in 2010. In the meantime, Aronofsky hopes The Fountain's fans will encourage Warner to release his alternate cut.

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“Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art.” - Andy Warhol